A List of Extremist and Terrorist Content Banned in Uzbekistan has been Published (list)

The supreme Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan has released a list of prohibited materials associated with extremism and terrorism.  The Committee on Religious Affairs reported this development, stating that these materials are not allowed to be imported, prepared, distributed, or displayed within the country.  The list, effective as of 17th of May 2023, is attached below.

In Uzbekistan, efforts are underway to identify websites, channels, and profiles that contain extremist and terrorist content.  Collaborating with responsible organizations, the Committee on Religious Affairs, along with the State Security Service, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the Information and Mass Communications Agency, works to halt their activities.  Once radical religious content is identified on the internet, the Committee, in conjunction with these organizations, deems them as extremist and terrorist materials through a decision made by the Supreme Court.

Based on this regulation, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan has issued approximately 60 decisions, identifying over 500 items with radical content.

These materials are then prohibited from being prepared, distributed, stored, imported, or displayed within the territory of Uzbekistan.

Furthermore, according to Cabinet of Ministers Decision No. 180 of the 14th of April 2022, titled "Approval of the Regulation on the Preparation, Import, and Distribution of Materials of Religious Content and the Procedure for Carrying Out Theological Expertise," all materials with religious content must undergo theological expertise.  Only upon receiving a positive conclusion from the expertise can they be prepared, imported, and distributed within the Republic of Uzbekistan. This decision serves as the foundation for their preparation, importation, and distribution within the country.

It should be noted that the Committee on Religious Affairs does not issue expert opinions on specific individuals or their actions. Instead, the committee conducts a state theological examination of religious materials provided by law enforcement agencies, adhering to the requirements of the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan and other relevant legal documents.

Materials of religious content are subject to certain restrictions according to relevant legislation.  These restrictions include:

•    Prohibition of materials that discriminate based on gender, race, nationality, language, religion, social origin, belief, personal or social status, or other circumstances, as well as materials that discredit the products of others.  
•    Prohibition of materials that call for forceful changes to the existing constitutional system and territorial integrity of the Republic of Uzbekistan.  
•    Prohibition of materials that promote war, violence, terrorism, religious extremism, and separatism.  
•    Prohibition of materials that disseminate information inciting national, racial, ethnic, or religious hatred.  
•    Prohibition of materials that call for a change of religious belief. 
•    Prohibition of materials that insult or degrade the religious feelings of individuals who practice religion.  
•    Prohibition of materials that urge citizens not to fulfill their constitutional obligations.  
•    Prohibition of materials that incite encroachment on the rights and property of state, public, or religious organizations.

It is important to note that spreading certain religious messages without proper authorization can result in legal consequences.  For example, a 20-year-old individual in the Akkurgan district of Tashkent region was sentenced to 3 years in prison for distributing a religious message titled "Shahid bolib ketsak rozi bolingiz" (accept us if we are martyrs) shahid, in Uzbek.  This message called for "Jihad" and "emigration" and was shared in a group called "Alhamdulillah" consisting of 10 members on the individual's iPhone-X phone through the messaging platform Telegram.

Similarly, in Tashkent city, a 22-year-old student was initially sentenced to 5 years in prison under Article 244-1 of the Criminal Code for simply listening to a nasheed on his phone.  However, his sentence was later commuted to probation, with 2 years of probation, and he was released from prison during the court proceedings.